Beach boat



Patented Apr. 5, 1932 UNITED vsrxrss RICHARD J'. `IEOGOGIK, 0F MILIEGRD, CONNECTICUT :BEACH BOAT Application `iled November, 1930. Serial No. 494,261.

This invention relates to boats and more particularly to a relatively flat raft type 'of boat which may be termed a beach boat, as it is well adapted for use about beaches by bathers in swimming costume or the like. It

will be understood, however, that the embodiment of my invention which I have illustra-ted and described is not limited to this use, but may be used as a duck boat, rowboat, or canoe, andis also adapted to be used for surf riding', or may be towed behind a motor boat as an aquaplane.

One object of the invention is to provide a boat suitable for use around bathing beaches or in shallow water which will have great stability and be very buoyant and of light weight. Y

Another object of the Vinvention is the provision of a boat ofthe type described which may be used in shallow water and which will be relatively light in weight so that it may be transported easilyf from place to place and may be readily drawn out of the water upon the beach desired.

A still further object o f the invention 1s the provision of a relatively flat boat which will be very buoyant and stable and will ride waves or rollers easily so that the interior of the boat will not be filled with water.

Another object of the invention is to, provide a relatively flat boat having a hollow body, the boat being shaped to a suiicient extent to ride waves which may be encounf tered, and which will have substantially no suction in mud or sand, such as is customarily encountered in the case of a boat having a flat bottom.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a light and stable and non-sinkable type of craft for use lin water sports so constructed that it may be manufactured economically and at the same time be a practical type of boat which may be put toa great variety of uses.

To these and other ends, the invention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings:

Fig. lis a top plan view of a boat embodyingmy invention;

ig. 2 is a slide elevational view of the` same ' Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line v3 3 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

The boat which I have selected to illustrate and describe as a preferred embodiment of my invention, comprises, as will be observed from an inspection of the drawings, a hollow body of `raft-like appearanceexcept that it is shaped to some extent to provide a depressed Vinterior or upper surface, and a convex or. depressed lower surface. be observed, these upper and lower surfaces are substantially parallel although this characteristic is not absolutely essential, and variation in this respect may be resorted to if desired. l

The frame of the boat may, and preferably does, comprise crossed beams extending diagonally between the opposite corners ifV the boat is of rectangular shape as shown. As shown, these beams 10, 11, 12 and 13 extend inwardly and'downwardly from the respective corners to have their inner ends embedded in or secured to a block 14 disposed substantially at the centereof the craft.' It will be noted from Fig. 3, for example, that each of these beams extends downwardly in an inclined position so that the upper surface of the block 14 will lie somewhatv below the corners andsides of the boat'so as toprovide a dished ordepressed upper surface which constitutes'the interior of the boat.

Secured upon the upper surfaces of the diagonally" extending beams, by any suitable means such as nails or screws, are p-ieces of ply board 15, 16, 17 and 18. In the form of boat shown, these pieces of ply board are of triangular shape meeting at the center of the boat 19 on the upper surface of the block 14. Suitable crossbeams 20 may be provided wherever desired to give suiioient rigid support to the ply board between the diagonals.

The sides and ends of the boat areV then closed by the end members 21 and 22, and the sidemembers'23 and 24. It will be under- As will stood that the pieces of ply board forming the upper surface of the craft are also secured to the end and side members 21, 22, 23 and 24C so as to be supported at their outer edges by thesel members. It will also be understood that glue may and will preferably be used at the joints between the ply board and the supporting members where water-tight joints are desired.

The bottom of the boat is substantially a duplicate of the upper surface in that it will also consist of four pieces of ply board 25, which, like the ply board forming the upper surface of the boat, will be secured to thediagonal and crossbeams and the side and end members and glued where desired. As the diagonal beams extend downwardly from the corners, it will be apparent that both upper and lower surfaces of the boat will extend downwardly in aninclined direction from each of the sides and ends toward the central portion of the craft. As the diagonal beams 10, 11, 12 and 13 are of uniform depth, the upper and lower surfaces of the boat are substantially parallel although this may be varied, if desired, and the vbeams made wider at one end than at the other so that, if desired, the hollow interior may be of greater height at the center than at the side edges.

It will be observed that as shown, the upper and lower surfaces of the boat are substantially pyramidal in form, the bottom surface projecting downwardly toward the center so that the bottom of the boat will be slightly inclined to enable it to ride the waves or rollers and the sides will be suliiciently elevated so that the waves will `not break thereover. Likewise the concave interior or upper `surface of the boat provides for a greater stability, as the occupants may sit near the central lower portion thereof.

v On'the otherl hand the upper surface is sufficiently -flat so that the entire surface may be used, if, for instance, one wishes to lie upon the boat for a sun bath or use it, as a raft for diving or the like, or for surf riding or aquaplaning.

Y Oar locks 26, 27, 28 and 29 may be provided at Vboth the sides and ends of the boatso that it may be rowed in any direction, or it may, of course, be poled or sculled if desired. Rope or cable loops 30 may also be provided at the corners so that the boat may be towed, or these may be used for bathers to hold on to the Yboat while learning to swim. These loops' may be passed through vertical openings 31 in theend beams 21 and 22.

In order that the interior of the boat may be drained in case any water should seep therein, the diagonal beams and also the crossbeams 20 are provided with openings 32, which, when the boat is upended, will allowV the water to drain down to one end where it may pass out through an opening 33 in the end member 21. It will be kunderstood that the opening 33 will be kept plugged when the boat is in use.

Although, in the embodiment of my invention shown in the drawings, the boat is of substantially rectangular shape, it will be obvious that the invention is not limited in this particular, as the ends may be rounded or maybe pointed if desired.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that itis not to be limited to all of the details shown, but is capable of modification and variation within the spirit .of the invention and within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A boat comprising Y an upper surface portion and a lower surface portion, the upper surface being dished out so that its central portion is lower than the side edges, and the lower surface being conveX s0 that its central portion is lower than its side edges, said upper and lower portions being secured together in spaced relation to provide a hollow body, and means at theedges of said body toclose the space therebetween. Y

2. A boat comprising body members eX- tending around the edges thereof, and upper A and lower surface portions secured to said body members and forming therewith a hollow closed body. said upper and lower surface portions extending downwardly from said body members toward the central part of the boat to form a dished upper surface and convex lower surface.

- 3. A boat comprising upper surface members and lower surface members secured together in spaced relation, said upper surface members being inclined vdownwardly from the edges of the boat toward the central part thereof. and said lower surface members being inclined downwardly fromtheedges ofV .4.;A boat comprising uppersurface members land lower surface members secured together in spaced relation, said upper surface members being Ainclined downwardlyl from the edges of the boat toward the central ypart thereof. and said lower surface members be ing inclined downwardly from the edges ofV the boat toward the central portion thereof,Y

and means to which the outer edges of the surfaceY members are secured, said means closing the space between said members to form therewith a hollow body, and said upper and lower surface members vvbeing disposed in vsubstantially parallel relation.

5. A boat comprising a frame and upper and lower surface members secured thereto, said frame comprising body members eXtend ing around the edges of the boat to which the upper and lower surface members are secured in spaced relation, said body members all lying substantially in the same plane, and said frame also comprising supporting members connected to said body members and lying between the upper and lower surface members, and said supporting members being inclined downwardly from the body members toward the central portion of the boat whereby the central portions of the upper and lower surfaces of the boat lie below the edge portions of said surfaces respectively.

6. A boat comprising a frame, said frame in turn comprising crossed diagonal frame members, said members extending downwardly from their ends toward the point of crossing, and members secured between the ends of said diagonal members, and upper and lower surface boards secured to said diagonal members and said other members whereby a hollow closed body is formed between said upper and lower surface members, and the central portions of said upper and lower surface members lie below the edge portions thereof.

7. A boat comprising a body portion consisting of peripheral frame members secured together to form a closed figure and all lying substantially in the same plane, and beam members crossing between said peripheral frame members and being inclined downwardly toward the central portion of the boat, and upper and lower surface members secured to the upper and lower surfaces of said beam members and said peripheral members, whereby a hollow body is formed therebetween and the sides of said body closed by said peripheral members, and said upper and lower surface members sloping upwardly from the central portion of the boat toward the sides and ends thereof.

S. A boat comprising a peripheral frame of substantially rectangular shape, diagonale joining the opposite vertices of the frame, said diagonale being inclined downwardly from said vertices toward the point of crossing, other frame members secured between the sides of said rectangular frame and also inc-lined downwardly from said sides toward Said diagonal members, and upper and lower surface boards secured to the upper and lower surfaces of said frame members whereby a dished hollow closed body is formed having its centra-l portion lower than the side edges thereof, and the space between said surfaces being closed by said rectangular frame members.

9. A boat comprising a peripheral frame of substantially rectangular shape, diagonals joining the opposite vertices of the frame, said diagonals being inclined downwardly from said vertices toward the point of crossing, other frame members secured between the sides of said rectangular frame and also inclined downwardly from said sides toward said diagonal members, and upper and lower surface boards secured to the upper and lower surfaces of said frame members whereby a dished hollow closed body is formed having its central portion lower than the side edges thereof, and the space between said surfaces being closed by said rectangular frame members, and said upper and lower surfaces being disposed in substantially parallel relation.

lO. A boat comprising a body portion consisting of peripheral frame members secured together to form a closed figure and all lying substantially in the same plane, and beam members crossing between said peripheral frame members and being inclined downwardly toward the central portion of the boat, and upper and lower surface members secured to the upper and lower surfaces of said beam members and said peripheral members, whereby a hollow body is formed therebetween and the sides of said body closed by said peripheral members, and said upper and lower surface members sloping upwardly from the central portion of the boat toward the sides and ends thereof, and oar locks situated at the sides and ends of said structure.

ll. A boat comprising a body portion consisting of peripheral frame members secured together to form a closed figure and all lying substantially in the same plane, and beam members crossing between said peripheral frame members and being inclined downwardly toward the central portion of the boat, and upper and lower surface members secured to the upper and lower surfaces of said beam members and said peripheral members, whereby a hollow body is formed therebetween and the sides of said body closed by said peripheral members, and said upper and lower surface members sloping upwardly from the central portion of the boat toward the sides and ends thereof, and loops secured to said peripheral frame members at the ends of said structure.

l2. A raft-like boat comprising an upper surface portion adapted to support the user, a lower surface portion spaced slightly from the upper portion, and a frame disposed between said surface portions and to which the latter are secured, and said frame closing the spaces between said upper and lower surface portions around the edges thereof to provide a relatively shallow closed hollow body, and said lower surface portion extending downwardly from the edge portions toward the central portionv of the boat to provide a convex lower surface.

Y In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 6th day of November, 1980.

RICHARD J. POCOCK. 

